The England and Arsenal player grew up with Enrique Iglesias on repeat, and knows the Bridget Jones soundtrack by heart. But what football song gives her goosebumps?
‘Justin Bieber was played so much in the changing room’: Leah Williamson’s honest playlist
The England and Arsenal player grew up with Enrique Iglesias on repeat, and knows the Bridget Jones soundtrack by heart. But what football song gives her goosebumps? The first song I fell in love withI used to have a...
The first song I fell in love withI used to have a cassette player with these fuzzy foam headphones, and only two cassettes: Hero by Enrique Iglesias and How Do I Live by LeAnn Rimes. I would play them over and over.
The first single I downloadedMichaela Strachan by Scouting for Girls. I thought it was fascinating that they’d written a song about her, even though I wasn’t quite sure who she was until I saw her on telly.
The song I do at karaokeMy initiation at Arsenal was to sing Stand By Me by Ben E King. Nowadays, I’d probably go for a Justin Bieber number, maybe One Less Lonely Girl.
The song I know every lyric toEvery song on the Bridget Jones soundtrack, because my mum played it so much in the car when I was younger.
The best song to play at a partyI like older music, so my favourite parties are 50th birthdays or wedding anniversaries where you get all the generations together, and they play things like Never Too Much by Luther Vandross.
The song I can no longer listen toWhere Are Ü Now by Jack Ü featuring Justin Bieber was played so much in the [Arsenal] changing room, that when it comes on now, I have to turn it straight off.
My favourite football songThree Lions by Baddiel & Skinner & Lightning Seeds, because of the 2022 Euros. Being able to sing “It’s coming home” was an amazing feeling. These days, The Angel (North London Forever) by Louis Dunford gives me goose bumps.
The song I secretly likeReturn to Sender by Elvis Presley was always playing in my headphones on the way to football practice.
The song that changed my lifeMy granny is big into gigs, and has taken me to see Paul Simon, Florence + the Machine and Teddy Swims. When we saw Norah Jones, the crowd was a bit older – hardly anyone had their phones out. When she sang Come Away With Me, I thought: “This is what music is about.”
The song that gets me up in the morningI’ve been listening to Inner Smile by Texas. We’ve had a lot of Michael Jackson on in the training ground, because of the movie. I think the song that really wakes me up is Billie (Loving Arms) by Fred Again.
The song that makes me cryYears ago, I cried in the middle of a New Year Eve party when Dancing on My Own by Robyn came on. Even though it’s a great tune, I think it just still got a bit much for me. I was 16, I rang my mum and said: “Can you come pick me up?”
The song I’d like played at my funeralI don’t want people to cry. I want them to have a good time. So I’ll have Believe by Cher or I’ll Be Around by the Spinners.
England women’s next World Cup qualifying game is against Greece on 9 October. Leah Williamson is an ambassador for Cadbury.
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